


Save You

by Mixxoh



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan, 進撃の巨人 | Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Lovers, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Falling In Love, Fanfiction, Friendship/Love, Hate Sex, Love, Love/Hate, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Smut, aot - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-18 05:34:33
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29363346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mixxoh/pseuds/Mixxoh
Summary: After living behind the safety of the walls, the fall of Shiganshina had brought nothing but pain and despair to Veena Fischer's life. However, now a graduated member of the Survey Corps,  she finds herself feeling at home with the people she met within those years after the destruction of her hometown. Well, everyone but Jean Kirstein.~~~Attack on Titan fanfiction.Jean Kirstein x OC, enemies to lovers.Mature content! 18+ please!
Relationships: Jean Kirstein/Original Character(s), Jean Kirstein/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 8





	1. Prologue

**Warnings: Violence, Cursing, Mentions of Death, Gore**

**Word Count: 2.8k**

It had been a while since Veena had been comfortable. The constant feeling of fear and uncertainty had dwindled as the years went by but never went away, a reminder of that time three years ago in Shiganshina.

Veena was only a young teenager at the time of the attack on Shiganshina District. Living with her parents and older sister, she had a happy life living in the quaint yet busy district. Her parents owned a small shop around the corner where she often worked to pass time with her older sister, Olivia. Olivia had been the sweetheart of the district, captivating the hearts of men in Shiganshina and the surrounding districts. She is beautiful, ethereal, and has a way with her words that ensured the likeness of everyone she met. Those characteristics didn't pass well to Veena, however. Veena is pretty, but not beautiful. She's charismatic, but not as much as Olivia. She's well liked, but not as popular. In a way, Veena has always envied her older sister but ever since the fall of Shiganshina, the envy she held for her sister slowly diminished until it no longer existed.

Olivia and Veena were working in their parents shop when the Colossal and Armored Titans destroyed the wall. Veena was behind the counter counting the money they made so far in the day while Olivia was assisting the customers in the shop itself.

"Ven," Olivia called out. Looking up from the cash in her hands, Veena found her sister deeper in the store assisting a man, giving Veena a soft smile with a book in her hands. "Can you check him out? Give him the discount, please!" She asked while handing the book back to the customer, her smile growing larger. 

Giving her a small smile back, she looks back down at the cash in her hands. Putting the cash in an envelope, she hears Olivia and the man exchange a few more words. The discount that Olivia gives out isn't much, really, only about 5% off, but she gives it out only to the nicer guys that hit on her. Their parents don't mind either, taking advantage of their daughter's good looks and personality to keep men coming back to the shop. Hearing the customer walk up the the small wooden counter, Veena glances up. Meeting his eyes, she gives him a smile while grabbing the book he handed out to her. 

"Just the journal is going to b-"

Suddenly, a loud boom interrupted their conversation. Startled, Veena locks eyes with Olivia across the room, her eyes wide.

"Ven-" Screaming interrupted what Olivia was going to say to Veena. Veena's head snaps to the front windows of the store, breaking eye contact with her sister to see a mass of people running past the store. Now very much scared rather than concerned, Veena puts the book down on the counter and rounds the wooden counter to crosses the store to the set of windows, her gaze set on the chaos outside. Looking out to where the now even larger mass of people are running from, her fear only grows larger. As the smoke dissipates, Veena sees a large titan peering over the wall. 

"There's no way..." Veena mutters to herself.

"No way, what? Veena!" Olivia screams at Veena, hearing Veena's muttering over the sound of screaming and shoes on pavement outside. Meeting Veena at the window, Olivia can feel her heart drop into her stomach as she sees the titan for the first time. "Is that...?" She mutters.

Their gaze is interrupted by another loud boom. Casting her eyes slightly downward from the large titan peering at them from behind the wall, Veena sees a large hole in the wall with titans now coming through into the district. Olivia must have seen the event too, quickly grabbing Veena's hand and squeezing it tightly. Veena was frozen in fear, not even wincing at the death grip that Olivia was giving her hand, while Olivia starting shaking in fear, feeling tears form in her eyes as she began to sob. After hearing her older sister's whimpers, Veena snaps out of her daze. Turning to face her sister, Veena grabs her attention.

"Olivia, we gotta go." Olivia's head snaps to meet Veena's gaze, her eyes wide as her heart starts to beat impossibly faster. 

"Veena, are you crazy? We can't go out there, there are titans!"

"Are you kidding? We can't stay here, Liv." Veena observes the scene in front of the shop, trying to piece together a plan of what to do. Her mind was scrambling, her eyes fitting everywhere almost all at once, observing the people running by, the titans pooling into Shiganshina, and the large titan that continues to peer at the chaos it's caused.

"Crap." Veena jumps, surprised by the male voice behind her. She had completely forgotten about the customer in the shop. He's peering outside the windows with Veena and Olivia, his eyes wide and breathe hard and fast. This sisters watch as he rushes to the front door of the shop, forcing it open despite the large crowd of people running against the door. Immediately, he's knocked down as the rush of people push past him, no one caring about the grown man knocked to the ground being trampled on.

Olivia starts to sob harder, watching the man being trampled to death in front of her. Staring in horror, Veena struggles to think of a plan to get out of this situation. They need to leave immediately before the titans reach their location and they get eaten, but they can't leave through the front door or else they'll be killed by their own people during the chaos.

"Olivia, we need to go, now." Veena emphasizes to her sister. Turning towards each other, Veena has problem focusing as she watches her sister crumbles to the ground and break down in front of her.

"We'll, um, yeah we'll leave through the back door into the alleyway and follow the crowd. The alleyway should be empty. I'm sure the Garrison is doing something about the crowd right now." Veena concludes out loud. "Liv, let's go." Grabbing her hand roughly, Veena pulls her sister up to her feet and starts to make for the back door on the opposite end of the shop. Pushing the door open, Veena pulls a sobbing Olivia into the alleyway. Looking at the open end of the alley, another large crowd of people are rushing by. "C'mon Olivia." Pulling her sister's hand hard, Veena and Olivia start running to the open end of the alley to the mass of chaos. Meeting the crowd, Veena pushes herself and Olivia into the swarm and beginning sprinting with the flow of people. 

It's absolute chaos, the sounds of people's screams and cries are deafening as they run to who knows where. The sight of everything are traumatizing itself, lone children crying for anyone to listen, dead bodies already littering the streets, and destroyed homes.

As they continue to run, Veena can feel Olivia pulling back on her arm. "Ven, what about mom and dad?" She manages to say despite her sobbing and her being out of breath due to the running.

Veena's blood runs cold, forgetting completely about her parents during everything happening. Truthfully, she's doesn't know what to do. She's conflicted, because if she risks finding her parents, her and Olivia's lives are even more at risk than they are now. However, if they were to continue with their current plan, they may not even see their parents again. Veena realizes she has to decide quickly seeing as they're approaching the market where their parent's were shopping at during the time of the break on the wall.

"Fuck, okay," Veena hesitates, "we'll swing by since the market's close, but we're gonna be quick, okay? We can't risk wasting too much time." She concludes as she tells Olivia. She can hear Olivia hold in her sobs, grateful that Veena is taking over in this situation.

Olivia had always envied her sister. Veena had always been headstrong and quick to think and move. She's incredibly strong mentally, never allowing things to bother her, or at least if it does, she never shows it for the sake of those around her. Olivia wasn't dumb like many thought, she knows many girls of the district were jealous of her beauty and charisma and many men wanted her. She knows her reputation in Shiganshina, but never truly understood why her sister didn't have the same reputation alongside her. 

Honestly, Olivia was scared. Her mind is racing with thoughts of what will happen, what did happen, and is happening. She desperately wanted her parents here to help them and to make sure they were safe. Olivia felt immensely guilty right now, having her younger sister take over and protect the both of them during a time like this.

Turning right, Veena continues to pull Olivia throughout Shiganshina, weaving themselves around people, rubble, and bodies. After a few more minutes, they reach the almost deserted market. The market was a large area filled with booths of vendors selling anything you need or can think of, however, now it was just an area of destruction. The usually large, empty, area was now littered with broken booths, produce, bloodied bodies, and stone from the now destroyed wall. With barely any people making their way through the area, it was easier for Veena and Olivia to look around.

"Remember, Liv, make it quick. Okay?" Veena tells Olivia. After Olivia makes her understanding known, they separate their hands. Veena and Olivia begin to look in every spot they can for anything to identify their parents with. They look under pieces of booths, around corners, and even under rocks in their desperate search for their parents.

Suddenly, Veena hears Olivia release a scream. Snapping her head in Olivia's direction, just a few feet to the right of her, Veena finds her older sister with her knees on the pavement, her shoulders shaking as she sobs. Veena feels her stomach drop, immediately running in the direction of her sister. Meeting her, Veena feels her heart break at the sight in front of her. Sinking to her knees next to her sister, she too starts to cry at the sight of their parents dead bodies. Veena couldn't believe, just a while ago her parents were leaving the shop with a smile and a wave, claiming they'd be back soon.

Olivia starts sobbing harder and hides behind her hands, not believing her eyes while Veena sits still, tears running down her cheeks as she's frozen, not being able to process what she's seeing. Closing her eyes, Veena leans her head back, facing the sky, and inhales deeply. After she lets out a breath, Veena brings her head back down looking one last time at her parents. As Olivia continues to sob, Veena reaches for her parents' hands and grabs their wedding rings. She pockets them after slipping them off of their fingers and moves to stand up. As she leans back, she feels the ground rumble. Alarmed, Veena looks up and around, trying to find the source of the noise. Wiping the tears from her blurry eyes, the sound continues. Veena attempts to find it while she stands up, getting ready to grab Olivia and run. The rumble gets louder each time it occurs. _Footsteps_ , Veena realizes. Now very alarmed, Veena attempts to get the attention of her still sobbing sister.

"Olivia, we _need_ to go right now." Veena emphasizes, reaching down to grab her sister's shoulders, still searching for the source of the footsteps.

"Ven," Olivia manages to choke out, "I don't think I can go." Her hands still holding her head, covering her eyes.

Veena snaps her head to the back of her sister's, "Olivia, you're kidding me right? We can't stay here, let's _go_." Veena's grip on Olivia's shoulder's tighten as she attempts to pull her sister up to her feet. Olivia struggles, wanting nothing more than to be with her parents right now. 

Veena's eyes sting with fresh tears, "Liv, _please_ , we need to go."

"I can't leave them, Ven!" Olivia for the first time since finding their parents lifts her head from her hands and locks eyes with her sister's. Veena's heart aches more, if that were possible, as she looks at her sister with red eyes and tears threatening to spill out, but trying her hardest to hide it for her older sister's sake.

"Olivia, please, I can't lose you too. Let's go before-" Suddenly, Veena realizes the footsteps are much, much closer than just a minute ago. The thuds becoming louder and louder with each passing second.

"Hey!" Veena whips her head behind her to the sound of the deep voice calling out to them to find two Garrison soldiers running their way. "What are you guys doing? Get to the boats!" One screams as they make their way to Veena and Olivia.

A loud thud distracts Veena however, bringing her gaze to the area before her, locking eyes with a titan standing at the opposite end of the market. Her breathe hitches and her adrenaline rushes through her, her blood turning cold with panic at the sight of a titan just mere meters in front of them. Olivia either doesn't notice or fails to care, continuing to grieve their parents' deaths with her head buried in her hands.

The Garrison soldiers arrive to the sisters, noticing the titan standing just in front of them. "Shit," one of them mutters, "Smith, grab her and run before that titan decides to move for us, alright?" 

The other soldier swallows thickly and nods, moving to grab Olivia's elbows to pull her up from the pavement. The soldier that spoke grabs Veena's shoulder, spinning her around and taking her frozen gaze from the titan that still hasn't moved.

"Are you okay? You both need to get to the boats immediately. Let's go." He says to her as he pushes her in the direction the soldiers came from on the opposite end of the market from the titan that continues to stare at them.

"Wait-" Veena tries to reason, not wanting to be separated from her sister.

"No, you need to leave _now_. Understood? The boats are waiting, you know where they are. We'll deal with her. Just focus on your safety right now." The Garrison soldier interrupted.

Veena knew he was right, in times like this you need to be selfish and think for yourself, no one else. However, Veena had already lost her parents and didn't want to lose her sister too. Veena's mind was racing with what to do, either she stays and risks her life, or she leaves and risks never seeing her sister again, whether that be death or being separated wherever they end up as refugees. She felt herself finally break down. Veena always prided herself in keeping her stress and fear hidden from others, in knowing when to step up and be there for everyone else. But she was tired. As the seconds ticked by, she felt her resolve dwindle little by little until she could barely hold herself up. She felt her eyes stinging with tears, threatening to slip out at any moment. Veena felt sick with herself. She's ashamed that the one thing she prided herself in is failing. She's ashamed that she can't support her sister who needs her right now more than ever, that all she wants to do is run and never look back.

"Liv, please, let's go." Veena pleaded with her older sister as her tears finally slipped out, staining her cheeks. She stood just a meter behind Olivia, watching as Olivia shook her head no. In a way, Veena was mad. She was extremely frustrated at her sister, her collected façade finally fading away at her sister's constant denial to save herself and her sister. Veena felt herself get angrier as the seconds ticked by. Why is her older sister acting like this, a child? Veena shouldn't be the one calling the shots, being the comforting hand in a time like this. She's only so old, being 15 years young and having to save her older sister's life as well as her own.

Veena sense movement in front of her, noticing the titan beginning to move slowly toward the group.

"Shit, Olivia, get your ass up and let's go the boats, _now_." Veena demanded with her sister one last time, her patience stretching thin as the situation gets worse and her stress level rises.

"Smith, bring this one to the boats," motioning towards Veena, frozen in fear as she watches the titan slowly but surely make its way towards them, "I'll carry that one to the boats. Move now!" the Garrison soldier ordered to the other. Immediately, Smith sits up and makes his way to Veena, grabbing her elbow and pulling her with him to the boats. Veena wants to struggle, wants to stay with her sister, but she can't find herself doing so, allowing the Garrison soldier to pull her in the direction of the boats. After taking a final glance at her older sister, Veena turns around and runs to the boats with the soldier, making a silent final goodbye to her family.


	2. What Do You Want?

**Warnings: Cursing**

**Word Count: 4.4k**

Veena was sitting on the soft grass outside, basking in the cool air of the autumn season as she looked at the calming scenery in front of her. She was enjoying the view when she heard footsteps behind her, the sound of flattening grass causing her to turn her head as she observed who had decided to interrupt her intended time alone that she sets time for everyday. The bright sun behind Veena had blinded her momentarily as she shifted her gaze to the intruder, quickly covering her eyes to protect them from the bright sunlight. She curses, turning her gaze back around to the view of the small town below her from the hill. Veena heard a deep chuckle resonate from behind, the person coming to interrupt her peace and quiet now just inches behind her. Immediately, she scoffs, knowing exactly who is now taking their seat next to her on the grass to join her.

She rolls her eyes, "Shut up, Marco." 

He fully laughs this time, always amused by way of conversation. "Oh please, Fischer. You're a dumbass, I can't help it."

She felt herself crack a smile at that, "You're such a fucking smartass, Marco. Now leave me alone, you know 5pm is my alone hour." Out of everyone in the 104th Training Corps, Veena was closest to Marco. After the fall of Shiganshina, she had been alone for years, her witty and quick to engage attitude long gone. Veena never looking anyone in the eye, never stood up for herself, and never bothered to befriend anyone. In a way, Veena did this to punish herself. She greatly regretted what she did to her only sister, Olivia, leaving her to die in order to save herself. Veena had always hated selfish people, but had turned into one even with family involved. Her life had no direction during those years, only living to survive. Granted, there wasn't much she could do as a refugee. She constantly felt like a burden to those around her and the locals made sure the refugees knew that with either their words or their actions. Veena felt empty during those years, at some points just waiting to die, the loneliness and guilt eating at her constantly. Everyday, she wished to go back and do things differently on that day in Shiganshina.

She finally started to feel like less of a burden and more of a person when she joined the 104th Training Corps. Seeing it as a way out of being a refugee, Veena reluctantly signed up and started her training. As the days went by however, she started to actually enjoy herself. She made friends with those training alongside her and felt her burdens slowly lift off her shoulders.

Veena began actually looking forward to being a soldier, getting the opportunity make up for her sins and protect others rather than herself. She trained hard everyday, never backing down without a fight, in hopes to make it to the Military Police to live a quiet and comfortable life. Granted, it would be more rewarding for her to join the Survey Corps or even the Garrison, but even after the fall of her home district, she was still a selfish person on the inside now matter how much she hated it. Veena definitely wasn't the best cadet out there, far from it really, but her dedication to improve had caught the eyes of her superiors and fellow cadets to where she was seen as a respectable soldier, despite her skills. However, she wasn't as skilled as she had hoped, choosing to join the Survey Corps after failing to make the top 10 cadets during her training.

Veena felt Marco place his hand on her shoulder from beside her, giving it a small squeeze as he said, "Yeah, well, dinner's ready. I thought I should be a good person and grab you before all the food ran out and you just got the scraps."

Feeling herself scoff, she muttered out, "Fucking Sascha. I swear, she hasn't gotten better about this food thing after all these years, even with everyone beating her ass about it everyday." Looking to her right, she sees Marco pull a large grin, silently agreeing with her.

"She is crazy, that's for sure." He agreed. "Eat with me, we haven't eaten together ever since our first day of training."

Veena felt her blood boil, getting annoyed with what Marco was requesting despite knowing how his bestfriends act around each other. "Marco, you know I can't do that. Meals are Jean's time with you." She reasoned with him. She loves Marco, she really does, but she would definitely rather spend less time with him if it meant she could avoid Jean.

Jean and Veena used to get along, them two with Marco making an iconic trio. However, Veena and Jean's friendship ended suddenly, for reasons both of them couldn't identify. Now, it's a mutual hatred, both competing for Marco's attention. Granted, Veena knows she doesn't need to prove her friendship with Marco to Jean, very confident that her friendship with Marco is strong. Normally, she would find this type of behavior childish, wanting nothing to do with it. But for a reason unknown to her, Jean frustrates her to no end, to the point of her participating in his childish competition.

Looking to her right, she sees Marco frown, still looking at the scenery of the small town in front of him. "Yeah, I know." He mutters to his friend to his left.

She leaves it at that, feeling Marco's obvious disappointment but not wanting to get into it, knowing her attitude would get the best of her. Jean and Veena's constant competing has affected Marco the most, no doubt. Constantly being called to one of the two while the other is present, having no choice but to be in the middle of whatever their trying to prove to each other. It was hard on him, his usual nice and friendly demeaner running thin when the two of them are together. Veena obviously senses this, so she tries her hardest to either avoid Jean or ignore him, for the sake of her and Marco's sanity. Jean makes it hard to do so, however, loving how he can rile her up and see what reactions he can get out of Veena.

Veena moves to stand up, Marco's hand sliding off her shoulder at the movement. Brushing the dirt off of her pants, she holds her hand out for Marco to grab. After reaching his own to her, Veena helps him up. "C'mon, let's go eat before Sascha gets a chance at the food." 

They make their way back to the Mess Hall, the sun now setting behind them. "I'll stop by your dorm after dinner for a little, I promise." Veena says, peering up at the tall man next to her. His happy eyes fit to hers, giving her a warm smile at the promise.

"Good," he says, turning his gaze back to the Mess Hall, "I miss you, Fischer, we don't hang out anymore." He informs her, the pair getting closer to the doors of the cafeteria.

Veena scoffs, rolling her eyes in annoyance.

Marco interrupts her before she can say anything, "I don't wanna hear it, Fischer, I know. It's always Jean. Why can't you guys just get along? Like old times?" Marco asks Veena, he voice softening. He really did miss his best friends getting along.

Veena sighs at that, not wanting to continue the conversation. "I don't know Marco, ask him." She stops the conversation at that. Arriving at the doors of the Mess Hall, Veena gives Marco a small wave and smile as she opens the doors and walks in, "I'll see you after dinner, I promise!"

Marco gives her a small smile back, following behind her and making his way to sit with Jean, Sascha, and Conny. He takes a seat next to Jean, saying his hello's and settling into the conversation at the table. Sascha and Conny are complaining adamantly about training tomorrow, not looking forward to the hand-to-hand combat that was scheduled for the cadets. Jean was listening to the two friends complain, saying things here and there, but never saying too much in the fear that their captain, Levi, will hear, who will not hesitate to enforce the harshest of punishments on his scouts.

"I _cannot_ be paired up with Mikasa again this time." Sascha emphasized to their group, remembering Mikasa landing Sascha on her back every time they re-matched. "She's insane, I was sore for a week after that."

Conny nodded enthusiastically, "She really did beat your ass over and over again, it was impressive you didn't die from embarrassment, honestly." At that, Sascha smacks Conny's arm next to her, "Ow!" He exclaims, rubbing his somewhat sore arm.

"Annie's insanely good, too." Marco butts in, remembering her spar with Ymir just last week.

"Fischer's really good too, definitely not on the same level as Annie or Mikasa, but definitely a good fight." Conny commented, watching her spar last week with Christa. Granted, Christa wasn't much of a fight, but Veena made very good technical points.

Jean scoffed at this, "Please, I could take Veena in a fight." Glancing to a table a few meters in front of him, where Veena sat eating with Reiner and Bertoldt. This made Conny and Sascha laugh hysterically, eyes wide at the claim.

"Jean, you're hilarious! There's no way you'd win in a fight against Fischer, but I'd definitely pay to see you try." Conny managed to let out in between his laughs, his mouth set in a wide grin as he looked at Jean. However, Jean had his hard gaze already fixed on Veena, planning to prove his friends wrong by beating her at training tomorrow. Jean pushes up off the table suddenly, standing up and beginning to make his way to Veena.

"Oi! Jean, where are you going?" Conny calls out to him but Jean ignores him, already close to the table Veena resides at with Reiner and Bertholdt.

"Hey." Veena jumps, startled at the sudden intrusion that interrupted her conversation with her friends. Looking up, she sees none other than Jean making his way to her table. Instantly, her mood sours.

She rolls her eyes, "What do you want, Kirstein?" She asks, fitting her gaze onto his.

"Pair up with me tomorrow."

Her eyes widen, amusement starting to settle in as her lips start to curl into a smile. "Are you serious right now?"

This infuriates Jean, seeing her amusement in her eyes. 

"Um, Jean, no offense, but I really don't think that's a good idea." Bertholdt butts in, sitting to Veena's left. 

Jean scoffs, "What's that supposed to mean?" He accuses.

"Jean, listen, we don't mean to be rude to you when we say she would easily put your ass on the ground." Reiner points out from across the table, causing Veena's smile to turn into a grin.

She meets Jean's eyes again, "Why would you even want to pair up with me Kirstein?" She asks him, confused by his request.

"Well, Veena, everyone seems to think you're good at hand-to-hand combat." Her smirk grows at this, "But," he continues, "I disagree, you're average, at best."

Immediately, her smirk vanishes and her eyes narrow at him. At this, Jean wears his own smirk, satisfied with her reaction.

"Excuse me?" She asks him, offended. She can't believe his words, her ego definitely wounded as he insults the one of her defining features as a scout. They have the attention of the whole cafeteria now, everyone watching the scene unfold, nervous as to what's going to happen next. Veena and Jean are known to get aggressive with each other, constantly bickering, with some of their arguments almost reaching physical. This sort of thing was common for the group, Jean and Veena always finding something to argue about.

Veena chuckles darkly, standing up from her seat and leaning onto her hands that sit on the table in front of her, eyes set firmly on the man in front of him. Their eyes narrow at each other, trying to figure the other one out. Veena rounds the table, making her way to stand in front of Jean, never breaking eye contact with him.

"Y'know what, Kirstein, why even wait for tomorrow? We can find out right now if my 'skills are average, at best.'" She challenges, blood boiling and adrenaline running. They step closer to each other, challenging each other with their eyes as they continue to stare, eyes never fitting anywhere else. Veena can hear someone stand, the sound interrupting the silence that had fallen throughout the Mess Hall, shoes hitting the wooden floor as whoever it is comes closer to the pair. Eren put his hands on Veena and Jean's shoulders in an attempt to calm the situation.

"Guys," Eren said to the pair, "break it up before Captain gets here."

"Shut the fuck up, Jeager."

"Stay out of this, Eren." Veena and Jean snap at Eren at once. Eren backs off, removing his hands from their shoulders and huffs out a sigh, returning to his table with Mikasa and Armin.

"I'll take you up on that offer, Veena." Jean mutters to Veena, his voice quiet and deep.

Ignoring how he called her by her first name, Veena's eyes widen slightly at the sound of his voice, a shiver running down her spine and her body warming up, not expecting it to sound so deep. She's startled at how she reacted to his voice, realizing that she sort of liked hearing him say her name like that. Scoffing, she rolls her eyes, annoyed with herself.

Jean notices the actions. Thinking her attitude was a result of what he said, he feels his annoyance at the girl grow. He takes another step closer to her, watching as she instinctively takes a step back at his intrusion.

"Watch yourself, Kirstein, don't cross a line with me." Veena warns him, feeling uncomfortable with how close he's gotten to her, not enjoying how her body is reacting to him being so close.

Jean, of course, is unfazed by her warning, staying where he is. If he's being honest, Jean is worried. His body is on fire being this close to Veena and he doesn't understand why. He's never been this close to her, even when they were good friends, and a small part of him doesn't mind being this close to her. However, the majority of him had sirens going off in his head, telling him to back away before he did something dumb.

Before he was able to, though, the doors of the Mess Hall slammed open, revealing Captain Levi alongside a nervous-looking scout. His eyes fall on Jean and Veena immediately. "You two," his voice booms in the quiet Mess Hall, grabbing everyone's attentions immediately. Jean and Veena salute him, turning away from each other and facing their captain. Veena can finally feel like she can breath, the situation far too tense for her liking. "Come with me," Levi orders, turning on his heel and walking outside.

Nervously, the pair follow. After meeting Levi outside, he stares at them for an uncomfortably long period of time.

Jean and Veena stare back, too scared to move or say anything. After a few more long minutes, Jean begins to speak, "Um, Captain-"

"No," Levi cuts him off. "You'll speak when I allow it. Now, one of you, tell me why I just had a scout interrupt my meeting with the Commander so I can make my way over here to break up a potentially physical altercation, which, as I saw when I arrived, was very close to being violent." He orders at the pair, his eyes flickering between Veena and Jean, waiting for an answer.

Veena's heart starts racing, trying to get a grip to give her superior an answer before Jean ruins it by opening his mouth. "I apologize sir," she starts, her eyes meeting Levi's, "Our argument got out of hand, it won't happen again, sir." She apologizes, starting to feel ashamed she let Jean get to her and for things to get so far. 

Levi is not satisfied with her apology, he will not condone behavior like this from his squad. "I will administer your punishments tomorrow," Levi informs, "now, finish your dinners and don't let this happen again. You're supposed to work with each other, not kill each other," He warns, "If you desperately want to fight each other, do so during training." He finishes, leaving the pair as he returns to his office. 

"You're a dumbass, Jean." Veena breathes out after the Captain is a good distance away. She's exhausted from everything that has occurred in the past 15 minutes, feeling a headache take over. She turns, intending to walk back into the Mess Hall to finish her dinner before bed, seeing as she needs to shower and chat with Marco before heading back to her own dorm for the night.

"Fuck you." Jean counters, saying the first thing that can come to his mind as he trails behind her. She ignores him, and continues to her table. She plops back down on her seat, her elbows resting on the table in front of her. Veena brings her head into her hands, shielding her eyes from the views of everyone and massaging her temples.

"Are you okay, Fischer? What happened out there with Levi?" Reiner asks her, moving across the bench to sit in front of her.

She lifts her head looks at him, "He's deciding our punishments for tomorrow. I just have a major headache right now. I think I'm gonna leave dinner early and head the showers, I'll see you guys tomorrow, yeah?" She says to the two, standing from her seat.

"Yeah, see you. Let us know if you need anything." Reiner ensures, sliding her dinner his way to finish. She smiles at that, appreciating that the food won't be going to waste due to her loss in appetite. She waves them a goodbye, turning around and entering the hallway to head to her dorm to prepare for her shower.

Veena's mind is racing, if she's being honest, not quite used to her reaction to Jean being so close to her. She hates him, that fact is obvious, and the way her body started heating up at his deep voice and close proximity made her feel sick. She decided to ignore this for the time being, pushing it to the back of her mind. Arriving to the room she shares with Christa, Veena walks to her side and begins rummaging through her dresser. Finding her pajamas and grabbing a towel, she begins her trek to the showers. After her shower, she arrives back to her shared room, finding Christa also getting ready for her shower.

"Veena! Oh my god, are you okay? You seemed really stressed out after talking to Levi." Christa expressed her concern, wanting to make sure her roommate wasn't hurt as Levi is known to be harsh with his punishments.

Veena smiled at this, looking at her roommate, "Don't worry, Christa, I'm fine. He's telling us our punishments tomorrow. I'm just exhausted, is all. Jean infuriates me too much. Also, you know-"

"Yeah, yeah, 'Only call me by my last name,' whatever." Christa rolls her eyes. "But Jean can be a pain," Christa agreed, "be sure not to let him get you too worked up, okay? I'm worried about you."

Veena laughs at this, genuinely happy that she has someone to look after her. "Thanks Christa, but don't worry about me, I'll be fine." She promises to her roommate. After getting dressed, Veena turns her attention to Christa, watching as she grabs what she needs to freshen up before bed. "I'm going to chat with Marco for a bit, so don't wait up!" Veena says to Christa as she opens the door, heading out into the hallway. After hearing Christa throw out a, 'See ya!', Veena shuts the door behind her and begins her walk to the other side of the dorms that house the boy's rooms. After walking only a short few minutes, she arrives at Marco's door, giving it a knock. After a minute of waiting, the door swings open to Jean with his shower supplies being carried under his arm.

At the sight of Veena standing outside his door, Jean lets out an annoyed huff, turning his head to Marco, who was sitting on his bed reading a book, already having taken his shower. "You didn't tell me she was coming over, dude. Warn me next time so I can be out of here before I have to look at her."

Veena scoffs at Jean's annoyance, shouldering him to push into the shared dorm room. "Shut it, Kirstein, I'll only be a minute." She says, making her way to sit on Marco's bed with him.

Jean watches her pull herself onto Marco's bed, leaning her back against the wall next to him. "Whatever," he says, "Just be sure you're out of here before I get back." He finishes, heading out the door and shutting it behind him.

Jean couldn't help but feel annoyed. He hated how she was everywhere, whether that be in the same area as him, hearing her name slip out of other people's mouths, or now, even in his head. He hadn't thought of her like this until recently, tonight's events at dinner riling him up. Jean wasn't sure if it was due to annoyance or something else, but his body reacted to her in a way he didn't want to happen again, embarrassed by how caught up in the moment he got. Yes, he likes to push her buttons to see how far he can push her before she cracks (he honestly couldn't believe he almost got her to crack tonight), but tries to restrain himself from going too far, before things get physical or things are said that can't be taken back.

Veena misses hanging out with Marco, this fact becoming much more present as they talk on his bed. They were laughing, Marco bringing up what his friends were talking about at dinner tonight, specifically about what made Jean snap and challenge Veena. She was laughing hard as Marco recounted what Conny and Sascha had said of Jean when he left the table to find her. The door to Marco and Jean's dorm swings open suddenly, causing Veena to halt her laughter and snap her gaze to the front, startled by the sudden intrusion. In walks a topless Jean, his towel hanging around his hips and his hair still dripping with water. Veena's eyes widen an embarrassing amount, her eyes glued to Jean as he steps in the room. _Holy shit_ , Veena thinks, her cheeks starting to burn. Immediately, Veena whips her head to the side, taking her eyes off of the man in the doorway as she shuts her eyes, _Ew_ , she thinks to herself, disgusted that she had this kind of reaction to Jean.

"Fuck dude, put some clothes on next time, yeah?" She shouts angrily at him, her head turning back around to face him, eyes concentrating on his as she glares at him.

Jean scoffs, turning away from her as he rummages through his drawer to find some clothes to change into. "Shut it, Veena, I thought I told you to be gone by the time I got back. Plus, this is my room, don't overstep." He warns her, annoyance creeping up on him. It was embarrassing enough to have to walk around the halls in nothing but his towel, and now he really didn't want to be reminded that the reason he had to do that in the first place was due to Veena's presence. He had completely forgotten about his change of clothes, for some reason his mind wiping clean when he opened his door to her small figure waiting on the other side. 

Veena rolls her eyes as she jumps off Marco's bed, smoothing out her clothes after her feet land on the wooden floor beneath her. "Alright, whatever, I'm leaving now." She announces to the pair, turning her body back in Marco's direction behind her. "See ya tomorrow, Marco." She says to him, giving a wave. She makes her way to the door, "Later, asswipe. By the way, stop calling me by my name, you know it pisses me off." She calls out to Jean as she opens their door, continuing through the doorway as she hears him respond with, "Yeah, whatever."

After pulling on his clothes, Jean climbs onto his bed on the opposite wall of Marco's, leaning his back against the wall. He looks at Marco, who pulled his book back out after Veena had made her leave.

"You still like her, don't you?" Jean asks Marco. Pulling his eyes from his book, Marco cracks a smile as he looks back at Jean.

"Oh please, Jean, that was ages ago, I'm over it. You never got over your crush for her, huh?" Marco cracks a smile, the memories of those years ago resurfacing as he turns his attention back to the book in his hand. Marco had always thought about this, assuming the reason Jean had changed his attitude with Veena was because of some dumb crush, but as the days turned into months and the months now turned into years, Marco isn't confident in his theory anymore.

Jean doesn't even hesitate as he scoffs, "I never liked her like that, Marco, you know that. She pisses me off too much."

Marco knows Jean is lying, "I really don't believe you, Jean. You know, it's okay to like her, she's cute, you gotta admit." Marco teases, enjoying this (one-sided) playful banter.

Jean is really annoyed now, "I'm not talking about this right now."

"Life for us is short, Jean, don't waste too much of it with petty arguments and being in denial, yeah?" Marco lectures. Jean lays down now, pulling the covers over intending to go to sleep soon. He can hear Marco sigh, putting his book on the nightstand next to him. As Marco puts out the oil lamp, hiding their room in darkness, Jean can't help but replay Marco's words in his head over and over again, annoyed knowing Marco is right about having a short life in this world.


	3. We Should Do This More Often

**Warnings: Cursing, Violence**

**Word Count: 3.2k**

Hand-to-hand combat training was Veena's favorite. She was good at it and she knew it. Her head moved slightly to the left, feeling the air shift on her face as the fist aimed at her head moved beside her. The dirt picked up as she moved her body to avoid the punch aimed at her gut, the dust from the ground getting picking up as she shuffles her feet to avoid the attacks. She moved around with ease, her defensive abilities making her one of the best fighters in the Survey Corps behind Mikasa and Annie.

Eren was frustrated. Every punch he was throwing at Veena was either dodged or blocked, his attacks not even on the same level as her reflexes. He was beginning to tire himself out, constantly chasing her as his determination to land at least one punch overtook his understanding of his abilities and stamina. Veena notices this, of course, knowing how Eren fights. Its easy to win against him, if she's being truthful. She's learned that he's determined, which is good, but in this instance it's his greatest weakness. He becomes too determined, hell-bent on his goal to the point where that's all he can focus on, completely ignoring how weak he becomes as the seconds go by. Veena planned for this, continuing to dodge his advances until he tired himself out enough that she could throw in some good punches.

Eren began faltering, his swings no longer having any power behind them and his legs began to move slower. Veena notices this, kicking dirt up while circling around him one last time to take her stance in front of him, her fists raised to sit in front of her face as she sets her right foot behind her, preparing to throw her punch. Eren attempts a few more attacks, Veena blocking each one. _Now_ , she thinks to herself, swinging her fist at Eren's gut. He hisses, his face twisting in pain as his hands instinctively move down to hold his stomach as he bends down slightly, the air being pushed out of his lungs by her punch. Veena swings her right leg forward, sweeping them under his own, effectively bringing Eren to the ground as he loses his balance. Eren crumbles on the loose dirt, clutching his stomach as he curls up in an almost fetal-like position. Satisfied, Veena stands normally again, the exhaustion of the fight getting to her as she lets her body relax. She takes a few deep breathes to calm herself, then reaches her hand down to the curled-up body laying on the dirt below them.

"Sorry, Eren. You okay?" She asks him as he grabs her hand.

Letting Veena pull him up from the ground, he grunts as his adrenaline starts to run thin and the pain from the fight makes itself known. "Shit, Fischer, what the fuck are you on?"

The pair laugh at his joke, letting each other take a breather before they go again. Usually for hand-to-hand combat training, Captain Levi would assign pairs, knowing everyone's strengths and weaknesses and pairing them up to utilize those components to have them train the best they possibly could. Today, however, Captain Levi gave them the opportunity to choose their own partners, a very rare occurrence. Of course, Veena and Eren sought each other out, loving the chance to fight one another.

"You got it Eren. Just focus more on yourself, not on your opponent." Veena advised.

Eren sighs, "Yeah, I know-"

"Oi," An unexpected voice interrupts. Turning their attention to the source, the pair turns there gazes towards the Captain's. Veena and Eren stand at attention, saluting at the sight of their superior. "What are you two doing?" Levi continues, "I don't remember allowing you guys a break from training."

Veena and Eren stiffen at his words. "Um, no, sir." Eren responds, glancing to the girl at his side, "We were just about-"

"I don't want to hear it. Fishcer, come here." Levi once against interrupts Eren. Veena and Eren glance at each other, Eren's sympathetic eyes meeting Veena's nervous ones.

Making her way to the captain, she asks him, "How can I help you, Captain?" He looks at her, blank eyes staring into hers. He says nothing, turning his gaze to focus on something behind her.

"Kirstein, come over here." He calls out.

Veena's head whips behind her, her gaze focusing on the man jogging in her direction. They make eye contact, Veena immediately rolling her eyes while he scoffs. Reaching them, Jean salutes the Captain, "Yes sir?" He asks.

Levi fits his eyes between the two of them for a minute, Veena and Jean slightly nervous under his gaze. "You two are going to be partners for the rest of today's training."

Veena's eyes widen at this, her mind trying grasp what the Captain is ordering for them. "Sir, can I ask why? We already have partners for today." She reasons.

"This is your punishment for last night, your previous partners will be paired together instead." Levi clarifies, his voice stern. "Now get to it, if I see you guys slacking off you won't come off as easy as this time." The Captain warns, turning on his feet and making his way back to the edge of the training grounds to observe the rest of his soldiers as they train. Standing beside Commander Erwin, Levi makes eye contact with the pair, giving them a threatening nod, warning them to begin before he involves himself again.

Turning around angrily, Veena scoffs as she makes her way to an open area, wanting to get this over as soon as possible. She would have much rather been punished with laundry or cleaning, not understanding why Captain Levi had to make her go through this. The pair interacting had gotten them in this mess in the first place, why did he think having them fight together would resolve anything? After finding a large enough area, Veena spun back around, "Let's hurry this up, Kirstein." She calls out to Jean, who has yet to move from their previous spot with the Captain.

Jean was equally as frustrated as Veena, debating whether or not to be defiant against Captain Levi and refuse his punishment or to just suck it up and endure having to be close to her for another hour or so. He really couldn't decide which was worse. Deciding to just suck it up, he rolls his eyes as he makes his way over to Veena who is now waiting impatiently for him, her firm glare set on his as he made his way closer to her.

Veena sighs, tilting her head up to the bright sky above her, closing her eyes as she attempts to calm herself enough to focus on her task at hand, Jean's mere presence pissing her off to no end even if they're both in deep shit with the Captain. Rolling her head once to give her neck a final stretch, she opens her eyes sets them on his own, prepping herself as she steps her right foot back and raising her hands level to her face. Jean mirrors Veena, copying the technique Annie had taught them in their training days. He slows his breathing, inhaling and exhaling through his nose as he focuses on fighting.

"Let me get everyone's attention." Veena hears Captain Levi shout from the edge of the training grounds, breaking her eye contact with Jean to snap her gaze in Levi's direction, startled at his interruption. Jean does the same, surprised by the Captain's voice. "Trainings over for the day," he announces, Connie and Sasha give each other a celebratory high-five at the news, "Except for Fischer and Kirstein, I want everyone to gather around and observe." He concludes.

 _You're fucking kidding me_ , Veena thinks to herself, her annoyance written all over her face as she scowled at his announcement.

Jean huffs out his annoyance, obviously equally as frustrated as Veena at this embarrassing turn of events. 

Veena watches as her comrades gather around herself and Jean, her eyes fitting to each person's face to gauge their reaction to having to watch the pair fight. Connie and Sasha are grinning as they move around the group, having people place bets on who wins, obviously very excited to witness the two who hate each other on the squad dish it out. Rolling her eyes at their antics, she observes the others, seeing how Mikasa, Ymir, and Eren seem to be pretty annoyed having to waste their time. Historia and Armin obviously look worried. Bertholdt and Reiner stare on with a glint in their eyes, obviously placing their bets with Veena. Smiling at this, her eyes finally meets Marco, nervousness obviously written all over his face. She gives him a reassuring smile, silently promising not to do too much damage.

Noticing this, Jean scoffs. "Stop looking at your boyfriend, let's get this over with, yeah?" He had been watching Veena ever since the Captain's announcement, curious as to how she would react to this as well. He was a little hurt, if he was being honest, watching her face contour into annoyance, seeming like she wanted to be anywhere but here right now (which, granted she did, hating being at the center of attention and definitely not wanting to interact with Jean). He shook his head slightly, _Why am I acting like this?_ He thinks to himself, wondering why he _did_ feel hurt at her reaction to the Captain's orders. _My ego, yeah, she definitely just hurt my ego_ , he concludes, convinced his emotions are just at a disarray from the sudden turn of events of the day.

Veena rolls her eyes at his comment, "God, Jean, do you ever just shut up?" She grumbled, her gaze fitting back to his as he stands in front of her.

She feels a hand grip her shoulder from the side, seeing an identical one grip Jean's as well. She turns her head, meeting Captain Levi's gaze as he stops the pair from their argument.

"You two, enough." He commands. Releasing their shoulders, he takes a few steps backwards. "We are a squad, and I'll be damned if I have anyone in my squad behave like these two," He announces, his eyes sweeping across everyone gathered around them. "You guys are comrades, you will like each other, trust each other, and fight alongside each other, not _with_ each other." His eyes fit to the two in front of him, his hard eyes set in anger, "Let these two be an example to you all, I refuse to have a squad that can't even act like decent fucking human beings to each other. Now, fight." He concludes.

The silence among the group is deafening. Veena feels her cheeks begin to redden in embarrassment, hating that she knows he's right. Softly sighing, she takes her stance, swinging her leg behind her and bringing her fists slightly up.

Noticing her movement, his hard gaze towards his Captain snapping to hers. He, too, takes his stance, mirroring hers once again.

"Is there a problem?" Levi remarked, watching the two as they stare at one another, hesitating. "There didn't seem to be a problem last night." 

The pair had never trained together in hand-to-hand combat, despite being cadets together and now together on Levi's squad in the Survey Corps. Veena's going in blind, which makes her nervous. She analyzes him, noting how he is definitely bigger and stronger than her, hoping this will slow him down enough to where she can fight him like she does Eren, running around until he tires himself out and giving herself the advantage. She highly underestimated him, though. He takes the first swing, a swift punch hitting her stomach. Her eyes widen at the pain, bending over slightly to cope. She refuses to move her hands down though, knowing that protecting her face should be her number one priority to defend herself against him. He's faster than she thought, not seeing the punch come until it was too late. Jean smirks at this, seeing her surprise boosting his ego immensely. She recovers fast, though, standing up straight again. She throws a punch aimed for his face, however, Jean predicts this and dodges her punch. With her hand still outstretched next to him, he locks her arm, twisting it slightly back enough give himself the control. His free arm pushes her torso down while he brings his knee up, the bone hitting her in the sternum.

Veena's pissed now. The air rushes out of her lungs, her shoulder aches, but all she can focus on is how she's seeing red. She brings her knee up to his groin, affectively having Jean push her away and out of his grip. He groans as their eyes meet, gazes hard and set on each others. "Not fair." He huffs out. He goes for another punch, this time aimed at Veena's face. Veena brings her elbow up, blocking his throw with her forearm. With her free hand, she grabs his outstretched wrist and brings it down. She swings the arm she had just used to block his attack, hitting him square in the eye. She quickly takes a step back, bringing her leg up as she kicks him on his side.

Their bodies are aching now, both tired of fighting and sore from the hits the other had landed. Veena was from from done, though. She throws a punch aimed for his gut, this time. Jean's reflexes were too quick however, Jean easily grabbing her arm. He spins them around, his chest facing her back as he brings her captured arm behind her, pressing it into the small of her back. He quickly grabs her other arm, doing the same as he did her pinned arm. He now had both of her arms pinned behind her back, lifting them up slightly to cause her some pain and discomfort. He leans his head down, his mouth ghosting over her ear as he speaks just loud enough for her to hear. "I don't know how you did it," he whispers, "convincing everyone you were actually good at this. Look at you now," he continues to whisper in her ear, his voice getting harsher, "you can't even fight back." He twists her arms even more, pain shooting from her shoulders down her arms. She groans from the pain, her eyes closed as her head falls back, the top of it hitting against Jean's shoulder. His eyes widen, forgetting how close they are to each other. He feels his body warm up, realizing the close proximity, the front of his body just inches from the back of hers.

Veena brings her head upright again, feeling tears form in her eyes and not wanting the man behind her to see it and tease her about it later on. He had struck a nerve with her, his last statement making old, buried memories of that day years ago resurface. She hates that he's right, hates that she can't fight back even after promising herself to always fight back and fight for those she loves, hates that he reminded her of how she couldn't even fight for her sister the day her hometown was destroyed. The more she thought of it, though, the more angry she got. The tears quickly went away, her body growing impossibly warm in anger and her blood boiling at his words. _How dare he?_ She questions. She tilts her head slightly back and jumps, headbutting Jean in the chin.

"Fuck!" He seethes, the pain causing him to let her arms go as he stumbles back. Veena spins around, sweeping his legs out from under him, the loose dirt picking up as he falls, his back hitting the dirt as he lets out a huff of air. Veena quickly climbs on top of him, her knees on either side of his hips, her legs slightly stretched behind her to hold his down and her hands holding his forearms down on either side of his head. She sat hovering above him, panting not only from the physical demand of their fight but also from his attacks, her body already beginning to bruise up. After securing his body down, ensuring that he won't be able to move, she moves her eyes up, finding his eyes already locked on hers. He smirks, his eyes observing the compromising position they found themselves in, "You know, Veena," he starts, "I kinda like this position you put us in." _Now is definitely not the the time to piss her off, dumbass_ , He thinks to himself, but its too late, the words already leaving his mouth. She narrows her eyes at him, her mouth opening in disbelief at his obvious flirting despite their situation. "We should do this more often." He says, his smirk growing even more. _Oh, my god. Why did you keep talking._ He internally scolds himself. Veena sits up at his words, releasing his arms and she sits back on her knees. His eyes follow her movements, curious as to what she's going to do next.

Veena was seeing red and her blood was boiling. Everything was too much, the embarrassment, her body in pain, and the way Jean's acknowledgement of their compromising position had her body warm and buzzing. _I gotta end this_ , she concludes as she leans back on her knees. She brings her arm up and swings her fist back down, hitting Jean square in the jaw. His head snaps to the side and his body grows limp.

"Oh shit!" Connie yelled, "Is he knocked out?" He points out. He begins to laugh hard, his cackles being heard miles away. Sasha's eyes widen at the revelation, her own laughter mixing in with Connie's. Everyone else is frozen, even Veena. She didn't know she knocked him out, she just really wanted to punch him and end this dumb punishment Captain Levi instilled on them.

"Fischer, up." Captain Levi commands from behind her. She quickly moves off of Jean, standing upright and facing the Captain. "Braun, Bott, bring Kirstein to the infirmary." He commands, "Everyone else, we're done for the day, go wash up before dinner." 

Veena moves to leave, but Levi stops her. "Fischer, stay. I need to speak with you." She freezes, watching everyone move around her to head back to the dorms. Bertoldt gives her a pat on her back as he walks past her, "You just won me some money, thanks." She chuckles as he walks away, turning her gaze to Captain Levi as they disappear inside the building.

"You fight well, I'll give you that." He compliments, "But you weren't supposed to knock the guy out." Her cheeks redden in embarrassment at his words. "You're on laundry duty tomorrow, as a punishment for not knowing when to stop. Dismissed." She nods, turning on her heel and making her way to the dorms behind her. Levi chuckles slightly, not wanting to admit to her that seeing someone knock out every once in a while was a little refreshing to see.


	4. You Need The Help

Warnings: Cursing (ofc)

Word Count: 2.7k

~*~

Laundry duty means being stuck in a room alone all day, which sucks. It also means not seeing friends, snacks instead of meals, and most importantly, not being able to train, which really sucks. Veena had already been in the small room for the majority of the day and she swears she's going crazy. The only contact she had with anyone else throughout the day was Historia bringing her small meals and Eren sneaking her some snacks, which she was eternally grateful for. Marco also had snuck by to inform Veena that Jean was doing just fine in the infirmary, in which Veena rolled her eyes in response. 

Veena was just starting on the Captain's laundry when the door to the laundry room swung open. Startled by the sudden intrusion, seeing as her next food delivery wasn't due for another few hours, Veena whips her head around to find Eren in the doorway.

"Hey," she says to him as he steps inside, closing the door behind him. Furrowing her brows, she questions him, "What are you doing here?"

"I got caught sneaking you food, so Levi's making me help you since I 'want to be around you so much'." He cracks a smile as he mocks the Captain.

Veena forms a smile of her own at this, "You're joking. Why does he always think like that? Kirstein and now you?" She scoffs, "Anyway, how'd you get caught?"

"Levi happened to be turning around the corner right as I was closing the door," He answers, his head rolling to the side in annoyance.

"Shit, that sucks." She laughs. Eren chuckles too, his laughter mixing with Veena's as he stands beside her.

He looks around the room, observing the loads of laundry littering every surface of the cramped room. "You definitely need the help, though," Eren observes, "This is going to take you all night to finish." He says as he knocks his shoulders into her lightly, Veena swaying as a result.

Veena groans in agreement, "I know, I swear Levi added random shit just to prolong my punishment." Eren nods in agreement at this, taking note of the large amount of laundry that the Captain had left Veena, knowing the clean freak likes to do laundry frequently.

"You know, a lot of us are surprised you managed to knock Jean out." Eren brings up, a smile growing on his face at the memory of yesterday's events.

Veena turns to him, her mouth ajar in disbelief. She hits his arm lightly as she says, "What's that supposed to mean? You don't think I'm strong enough or something?"

"No, no, nothing like that." He says as he shakes his head at her accusation, "Of course I knew you would win. Jean sucks and he knows it, his ego's just too big to admit it out-loud, especially in front of you. Everyone can agree that you know when to stop, though, and we were all just a little surprised that you took it that far." Eren continues as they fold the pile of clothes sitting in front of them, "I've noticed that when you and Jean get in your petty arguments, they never really go anywhere, you know?" He questions. Unsure of what he's talking about, Veena shifts her gaze to his, "I mean, they're just arguments, they always end before too many things are said or before they get physical, so we were all a little surprised when you knocked him out." He finishes, "And scared too, definitely scared." Veena rolls her eyes at this, her ego inflating slightly at his last statement. "Um," Eren falters as Veena turns her head back around to the clothes in front of her, "Did he say something to you, Jean, I mean?" Eren asks.

"What do you mean?" Veena asks him, embarrassment washing over her as she thought back to Jean's words and how they affected her. She hated admitted that they did affect her, the way their bodies were too close for comfort, the way she could feel his lips on her ear, and how strangely her body reacted to his hushed words, even if they were spitting venom and were nothing but harsh. But then, she thought back to what he had said that really pushed her over the edge, how he insulted her and insinuated her weakness.

"Well, you basically lost control there for a second. He must've said something to piss you off enough for you to lose your cool." He explains, placing a folded shirt to the side.

"Oh, -"

"We don't have to talk about it though, if you don't want to." Eren reassures her. No one really knew about Veena's past at Shiganshina. She never talked about it, even when Eren, Mikasa, and Armin were reciting their experiences that day the walls were destroyed. Her experience of that day in Shiganshina was a complete mystery to everyone, but everyone knew it was bad. It took a while for people to stop asking Veena of that day, however, Connie and Sasha being determined to find out Veena's deepest and darkest secrets. They had come up with every ridiculous conspiracy theory imaginable but only keeping it to their close group of friends, thankfully. Eventually, however, the pair had stopped trying, realizing that Veena was not gonna budge. Eren had assumed Jean said something about Shiganshina, judging from the way Veena had acted towards him before the turning point of their fight.

"No, it's okay, Eren." Veena sighs, her gaze returning once again to the messy pile of clothes sitting in front of them. "He just said something that reminded me of back home, is all." She shortly explains as she grabs a shirt from the pile and neatly folds it.

As she sets the shirt down in the appropriate pile and reaches for a new article of clothing to fold, Eren asks, "Do you wanna talk about it?"

Veena shyly smiles at his questions, thoughts racing in her head. There was a reason she never wanted to talk about her experience of Shiganshina with her comrades. She was nervous of how they would react to her actions that day. Compared to Eren, she was a coward. He was forced to leave his mother, but at least he had Mikasa with him. Veena wasn't forced to leave Olivia, her only family member left, but she did. She was selfish that day and granted, she needed to be, but the guilt of leaving her sister to die eats her up everyday. But Veena's learned to push it aside over the years, reminding herself that there was nothing else she could have done. Jean had really crossed the line yesterday, however, this much was evident during their training. His words reminding her of how much of a coward she actually is despite hiding it for the sake of herself and her image to her comrades, ensuring everyone they could trust her with their lives. And they could, she believed herself to be a very trustworthy person. But every once in a while, her thoughts return back to that day back home, and she's not so confident in herself anymore.

Veena takes a final glance at Eren after gently placing the pair of pants in its pile. "Not today, Eren, but thanks." She sighs, giving him a small yet happy smile. Giving her a smile back, the pair turn their attentions back to the diminishing pile of clothes before them.

They continued to fold the clothes in silence, the pile quickly getting smaller until only a few articles of clothing remained. Just as the pair were folding the last pair of pants, the door behind them opens. Turning their attention behind them, Veena and Eren find Captain Levi at the door. Quickly, the pair salute him. He silently walks inside the quaint room, his eyes running over the neatly folded piles of clothes as he inspects their job.

"Well done," Levi tells the pair, "You guys are dismissed. Go eat dinner and head to bed."

"Thank you, Captain." The pair reply. Quickly, they rush towards the door with slight smiles on their faces, both of them excited to finally be let out of the cramped, hot room.

Before Veena can get past the door frame however, Levi calls out to her, "Fischer, meet me in my office after dinner."

What did I do wrong this time? She questions herself. "Yes sir." She replies, not wanting to question her Captain.

Walking out into the corridor, Veena sets off for the Mess Hall. The sun had just set, making the Barracks considerably much more darker than when she arrived in the morning. Catching up with Eren, the pair make their way for the Mess Hall. Dinner must have just started, Veena notices, considering the last round of people had their food in hand and were starting to sit down.

"Eren! Fischer!" A voice calls out. Turning their attention to the source, the pair see Marco waiving them over to the table he occupies with the others. Sitting down on the wooden bench, Marco pushes Veena a tray filled to the brim with food from his seat beside her. Giving him a quick thanks, Veena begins to shovel the food in her mouth, thankful that her friend thought to grab her some food before the majority of it had disappeared, probably from Sasha. Her eating was interrupted when the seat on the other side of her was suddenly occupied by Eren after he grabbed his own food. The conversation had already picked back up at the table, Connie and Sasha having an animated argument with the rest of the table as an audience. 

Veena had been watching the pair argue with a smile on her face when she felt Marco lean into her, bringing his face closer to hers as he whispers, careful not to interrupt the discussion, "We're gonna go see Jean after dinner, if you want to join?" He asks her.

She sighs at his question, seeing Jean is the last thing she wants to do right now. Veena needs space from him for a while. The way her body reacted to his and his words had confused her and Veena desperately wanted to keep her distance from Jean to figure herself out before she can even think of being in the same vicinity as him again. But even if she wanted to go see Jean, she couldn't. "Sorry, Marco, I can't. I have to meet the Captain after dinner."

"Ah, okay. Don't worry, I'll let him know you wanted to swing by." He teases her.

She rolls her eyes at his excuse of a joke, her shoulder hitting his, "Marco," she groans, "Shut up."

Veena refocuses her attention to the rest of the table after hearing Connie's groaning.

"Training was so hard today." He expresses solemnly, his arms raising above his head as he stretches.

"Literally," Sasha joins in, "ODM gear training takes such a toll."

Veena gasps at the news, learning that she missed the training she needs most. "No way! I missed ODM training?" Veena wasn't exactly the greatest soldier anyway, but she was really bad at ODM gear. Despite needing it desperately, Veena hated ODM gear with a passion, mostly because she could feel Jean, the best one with ODM, silently judging her the entire training session.

Eren gives her a somber look, "Sorry, Fischer. Maybe you can ask one of the officers for private training? Or I can help you, if you want." Eren suggests, the tone of his voice rising slightly at the end.

"No, don't worry about it. Maybe Hange wouldn't mind, I need the extra help anyway." She answers Eren.

Eren was about to say something else but was interrupted by Ymir as she asked, "We're still going on that expedition tomorrow, right? Shorty hasn't said anything yet." The Scouts are to go on a mission tomorrow to clear out more Titans from the land they stole after Wall Maria broke, a small but significant step into reclaiming not only Wall Maria but Shiganshina District too.

"Ymir," Historia quipped, "Don't call him that."

Connie barked out a laugh, "Yeah, Ymir, don't call him that. What's Levi gonna do? Its not like there's a lot of him that can do something about it."

"Connie," Sasha whined, "Stop, I feel like he's close by."

"Oh shit," Connie murmured, his head turning around to have a look.

Veena had finished her dinner rather quickly after that the conversation having died down. The consequence of not having a substantial amount of food throughout the day keeping her stomach empty. "Alright, I'll see you guys tomorrow." Veena announces to the table as she moves to stand up.

"Do you want me to walk you to Captain's?" Marco asks her, "We have some time before we planned to go see Jean."

Veena shakes her head at his question, "No, don't worry about it. I'll be fine." She answers him as she turns and leaves the table to make her way to Levi's office. After a few long minutes, she finally arrives in front of his door and gives it a few knocks.

"Come in." His voice calls out from the other side of the door. Veena opens his door slowly and peers inside to find Levi sitting at his desk with paperwork sprawled out, a tea cup resting in the corner. He makes eye contact with her and motions for her to come in, sensing her hesitation. She widens the door more to fit her body through and closes it softly behind her, slowly making her way to sit at the wooden chair sitting on the opposite side of his desk.

"Have a seat, Fischer." Levi motions to the chair opposite him. After Veena takes her seat, Levi continues, "Do you know what you missed today?" He asks.

Veena nods slowly, "Yes sir, I missed ODM training today."

"And do you know how you rank in ODM skill amongst your comrades?"

"Not... so well, sir."

Levi lets out a soft chuckle, "Correct, you're one of the worst, if I'm being honest."

Rude, Veena mentally scoffs.

"Normally, I would let you brats miss training as part of your punishment, but unfortunately, ODM training is too valuable for you to miss out on." Levi explains, his cold stare holding her wide eyes. "Because of this, while everyone else has the day off after our expedition to rest, you will be having a private ODM training session with Kirstein."

Veena's eyes almost pop out of their sockets at his words. Kirstein? She questions to herself, There's no fucking way. She refuses to say anything though, not trusting herself to say something nice after hearing his news.

Levi observes her expression, amused by her reaction. "Kirstein is the best out of all of your comrades. Unfortunately, all of the superiors are going to Trost District in two days to take care of some business, so Kirstein is the next best person to instruct you." Levi explains to her.

She huffs out a sigh, not exactly thrilled by the news. Veena won't complain though, knowing that she really needs the help. She also somewhat appreciates Levi's concern for her training despite him very rude about it.

He raises an eyebrow at her, surprised by her lack of reaction and objection. "Alright, Kirstein's cleared from the infirmary so you'll see him first thing the morning after the expedition. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir." Veena answers, already dreading not just being near Kirstein, but seeing him as well.

"Good," Levi quips, "Now get to bed, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

"Yes sir," Veena tells him as she rises from the chair, being sure to put it back in its original spot, knowing how clean and neat Levi likes things to be. "Have a great night, sir." She calls out to her Captain as she opens the door. Giving her a slight nod, Levi returns to his paperwork and Veena closes the door behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I just want to thank everyone for reading my story! I apologize it's coming out so infrequently, I'm getting pretty busy with classes and work but I think I have my schedule figured out to write a little bit each day. Also! I'm currently writing the first chapter to a JeanxReader College au! I'm very excited about it and I hope you guys are too, so look out for it. I like writing two stories at once, its a nice palate cleanser (for a lack of a better word) and hopefully I wont get too stuck when writing either story.


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